Tampa couple stars in HGTV’s 100 Day Dream Home

The suburban MiraBay neighborhood of Apollo Beach is no stranger to work trucks and construction crews putting up smartly fashioned family homes. But the hive of activity on Tybee Island Drive was buzzing more than most this week as HGTV cameras rolled.

Landscapers speedily laid green squares of grass around a pale blue home with a wrap-around porch. Inside, kitchen appliances still encased in plastic were piled in the corner of a kitchen with no countertops. The din of beeps and buzz saws created a racket too loud to capture conversation. Producers set up down the street as go-getters Brian and Mika Kleinschmidt of Riverview ticked off their to-do list.

The “big reveal” was approaching on 100 Day Dream Home, a new reality show that offers a twist on HGTV’s signature brand of remodel shows.

The show, which premieres at 10 p.m. Sunday, will follow the husband-and-wife real estate duo as they conjure up an entirely new home from the ground up for clients within 100 days. Viewers will get to see the process from start to finish — from choosing a location to picking out styling and design choices — and follow the construction with a strict deadline. Producers also add a surprise for the homeowners, such as a backyard or kitchen addition they didn’t have in their original plans. It gets thrown in as a gift that matches the personality of the family.

The Kleinschmidts, who met as teenagers at Riverview High School 20 years ago, have been working on the concept for three years. They said the stars aligned, thanks to a college friend, to get their idea in front of the right network executives.

The Tampa Bay area will get its moment in the spotlight as the couple build homes in Pinellas Park, Seminole Heights, Ruskin and even demolish an old home in Shore Acres to meet the build challenge. Some local landmarks such as parks, beaches and Parkesdale Farm’s famous strawberry shortcake in Plant City will pop up as the couple takes clients on trips called “inspiration tours” to help gather ideas for the new build.

“The location is its own character,” Brian Kleinschmidt said. “We are showing lakefront, bay front, and in Plant City we are in the middle of an old pasture. So really showing all the different aspects of Tampa Bay is kind of cool.”

The premiere episode is in Riverview. He finds it fitting that this crazy journey was filmed five miles away from where they first met in high school.

Despite the empty rooms and layers of sawdust, Brian insisted the Apollo Beach house just needed “finishing touches” before next Friday’s reveal. He was waiting on the countertops to arrive, which had been promised 40 minutes earlier.

“A lot of this process is hurry up and wait," he said. “And then wait and hurry up.”

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For anyone who feels like a mere kitchen remodel takes up the bulk of a year, building a house in 100 days seems far-fetched. But if you have the right team in place, Brian Kleinschmidt said, it’s quite possible. Back when they were doing spec homes and flipping properties, the couple once built a house in 63 days. But most builders tell clients to expect construction to take six to eight months minimum.

As devout HGTV watchers, the couple said it dawned on them that their business of building homes could be a unique take on a genre that heavily features remodels. The houses range from 2,500 to 4,500 square feet and start at about $300,000.

Mika’s job may be the harder one, they said. She starts with the homeowners and helps them figure out what they want, sometimes ending up as a family mediator. The initial design choices are made in the first two weeks and once the house is framed, the family is sent away and doesn’t see the final product until the big reveal.

That might be the reason they haven’t broken the 100-day deadline.

“That’s really what slows the process down,” Brian said. “The homeowner comes in every two days and says change this and change that.”

After five shows and with three more to go, they haven’t missed the 100-day deadline yet, Mika said. But they did have a nail-biter in Seminole Heights.

“We had one night where we were pushing it and the reveal was the next day," she said. "I don’t care how much makeup you put on me, if I’m tired, I’m freaking tired.”

TUNE IN

100 Day Dream Home

The show premieres at 10 p.m. Sunday on HGTV at 10 p.m. In the episode, an engaged couple debates building a house close to downtown Tampa or getting a bigger house for their budget in Riverview.